Review: Sophia's Schooling (School of Enlightenment Book 1) by Maggie Sims

     

Print Length: 313 pages

Publisher:  Maggie Sims (May 23, 2022)

From Goodreads.com:  Orphaned at eighteen, Sophia Wilkinson has learned love means loss. Now she must leave her country home to navigate the opulence of the London Season, although she has no desire for romance or a husband.

Edward Morduant, the newest Earl of Peterborough, is struggling with the business of his family estate. He has shunned marriage due to a shameful secret, but with his title comes the need for heirs.

Despite their misgivings, Sophia and Edward cannot resist their attraction. When she accidentally discovers his penchant for spankings, her curiosity is her undoing. A clandestine meeting risks a scandal. Only marriage to a reluctant bridegroom can save her reputation. But perhaps the School of Enlightenment can give her an education in love.

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My Rating: 1 star out of 5

I love a well-written erotica novel just as much as I love a well-written historical novel. So when presented with the opportunity to read one that promised both? I was like YES PLEASE! However, in my humble opinion, this one was neither, and it left me rather wanting for a lot of different reasons. 

For starters, upon the first meeting of our main characters, they become fixated on spanking. For Edward, this makes sense as it has been established that he frequents places that cater to his particular proclivities. For Sophia however, it just came across as weird. She is 18, a gently bred woman looking for a husband, yet she can't stop thinking about getting spanked by a man who she not only just met, but who was also rude to her? But because they have this attraction to each other, and she has a curiosity about spanking (made worse when she spies on his cousin and his wife while they are engaging in sexual acts), they of course can't keep their hands off each other, and of course, he ends up compromising her and forced into marrying her. 

I thought maybe once they were married, things would get better, but if anything they got worse.  First, Sophia is sent to a school to help women learn how to please men. That's right. In regency England we are expected to believe there is a school where married (or unmarried as most of the women were) young misses were not only taught how to please a man, but forced to touch themselves while in the room with all the other girls. I'm sorry what? Sex was a taboo subject back then, there is no way a school like this would have existed. But of course, Sophia enjoys EVERYTHING she learns, and EVERYTHING her husband does to her, even when it boarders on non-consensual. For example, he decides to "punish" her with a butt plug, and when she makes a noise of complaint he smacks her ass and reminds her to be quiet or she'll make it worse. He then proceeds to tell her, "It shall be easier and less painful if you do not clench, but either way this is going inside you".

I'm sorry what? That is NOT even remotely sexy. But of course, after he smacks her and sticks a plug in her, her bottom starts to burn from the outside "igniting in a burst of love". Whatever that is supposed to mean.

Added to that, there were literally pages going back and forth of the same thing over and over again. Sophia promising to be the "best darned wife" she could be, but vowing not to fall in love with her husband (because everyone she ever loved had left her). Edward meanwhile is lamenting his dark secret (he has trouble reading), and how he just knows he can't fall in love with Sophia because if she learned of his impediment she would surely scorn him like all the other women in his life. Also the back and forth of her wanting to work in the stables and him not letting her. 

And if I had to read about Sophia's nipples "hardening to peaks" one more time I swore I was going to throw my kindle. Seriously, they were hard so many times throughout this book, I started to feel even sorrier for the poor girl. I mean she already has no backbone, and was obviously brainwashed by the school and then her husband to feel as though she deserved to be punished when what she did was actually helpful, but then to have to go through life with constantly hard nipples? 

Just taking a quick glance at other reviews, it is obvious I am in the minority with my opinions on this one. So if you still want to give it a shot, go for it. I would love to hear what you think about it if you do! 

DISCLAIMER: I received a complimentary copy of this novel from the publisher. This has not affected my review in any way. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are 100% my own.

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                                           Sophia's Schooling is available from Amazon.com